A quite but productive week at the museum. A nice stream of visitors each day visiting from several states, CA, AZ, CO. a good forecast for summer. The Wednesday team is catching up with the work behind the scenes that allow the museum to be what it is. Georgia finally had time to work on our scrapbooks that record our exhibits, special events, news coverage , etc. She is the short version of the past role of archivist. We just don't have the space to keep every piece of paper so Georgia keeps a snapshot in volumes. These are available for review so next visit if you want to visit our past, simply ask to see our scrapbooks. Ann has started her new project involving our collections of books. Only Ann would volunteer for such a task. We really appreciate her. Fern reviewed and updated the obit books and did her usual cleaning which we truly appreciate. Ann and Fern keep us tidy. The only area they haven't ventured into is "the office". I think it is too frighten. Dort worked on accession new items and worked on the office business. A never ending task as the museum succeeds, the business end grows.

REMINDERS

TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE FOR THE DUGOUT DINNER. MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS NOW. 806-852-2123

Keep the memberships coming. the drive is going nicely. second round of renewals will be sent out in June. Renew now.

HISTORICAL HAPPENINGS

This weekend , a historical event occurred with the estate auction of Hilmer and Lottie Koch. The items led us through more than 50 years of Lipscomb County living. All the various parts to repair cars from the 1940's thru the 60's. Old grain and farm trucks with a sampling of our favorite cars, thunderbirds, fairlanes, etc. There were items that Hilmer and Lottie had collected over the years reflecting family life from beer and wine making to milking,butter making and canning. The old beautiful ornate stove was originally either in the courthouse or the school used by Hilmer to heat his shop. The stove was a true prize at the auction. We heard stories of girls assisting their mother do the family washings with the ringer washers (still working), the old porcelain, kerosene stoves, and so many household tools, bikes, etc.
As enjoyable as the auction was, the true treat of the day was meeting and visiting the Koch family and lipscomb county residents and people from the panhandle area. The family stories that were shared as items came up for sale or just the stories. I think that is why I am an auction addict, the people and the stories that I hear are all treasures.

The Koch family is one of our oldest families. Michael and Katherina Koch immigrated to the United States in 1902 from Eigenfeld, Russia. Their port of entry was in Galveston, TX. They traveled to Shattuck, OK and settled on a farm southwest of town. Michael's sixth child, Jacob M. Koch was around nineteen when they came to America on the F. Missier Brennen . Jacob married (Molly) Amalia (Piel) in 1906 in Shattuck, OK. They lived on a farm south of Shattuck until 1913 . They then bought a farm south of Lipscomb, TX. They had ten children ,Hillmer was born in OK prior to the move to Texas. Jacob helped build the St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in 1917. He also donated an acre of land for the St. John's Lutheran Cemetery, south of Lipscomb.

Hilmer was married to Charlotte (Lottie) Miller in 1933 at the St. John's Lutheran Church. Lottie was the daughter of Fred and Charlotte Littau Meller. The Kochs continued the family tradition of farming and ranching. In 1947, they built a home in Lipscomb and he purchased a repair shop in 1948 where he did auto repairs for friends and neighbors (this was the site of the auction). Hilmer also drove the local school bus for several years. The Kochs were always involved with the church and community. Hilmer served on the church board and the school board. Lottie served the church's as Ladies Aide,and on the Altar guild. She also served as PTA officer and was a member of the community quilting club.

Hilmer and Lottie enjoyed playing cards and dominoes but were best known for the love of family and community. This was evident Saturday as we met and visited with their seven children and their families. In preparing this article , I read one comment on Hilmer that reported that he loved to tell jokes and provide "puzzles" for the 7K "Fable of Knowledge". This is a new one for me and I will be calling the Kochs this week to learn about this and will report back next week the answer (I hope).

May is memorial month so remember your ancestors by researching or revisiting their history and their stories. Celebrate their lives.